A man once asked a wise monk:
“Master… what is the purpose of life?
Why are we here if, in the end, everything disappears?”
The monk smiled gently and asked him:
“Have you ever watched a sunrise?”
“Yes,” the man replied.
“Does a sunrise last forever?”
“No.”
“Then why do people keep watching it?”
The man fell silent.
The monk continued softly:
“Life was never meant to last forever.
It is precisely its impermanence that makes it so precious.
A flower blooms… and then withers.
The seasons arrive… and change.
People enter our lives… and eventually leave again.
And because of this, every moment becomes precious.”
The man lowered his gaze.
“If everything eventually ends… then what is the point of love, dreams, or even trying?”
The monk picked up a candle, lit it, and said:
“This candle will not burn forever either.
Yet it brings light for as long as the flame lives.”
The man watched in silence.
Then the monk spoke words he would never forget:
“The purpose of life is not to become immortal.
The purpose is to truly learn how to live before you die.
To love deeply without clinging.
To grow through pain rather than becoming bitter.
To help others whenever possible.
To understand yourself.
To find peace within your own mind.”
The man asked softly:
“And what if life becomes painful?”
The monk smiled once more.
“Pain is part of awakening.
Many people only begin searching for truth when suffering shatters their illusions.”
Then he pointed toward the sky and said:
“Birds do not spend their lives searching for the meaning of the wind.
They learn to fly while the wind is moving.”
Tears filled the man's eyes as he sat quietly.
The monk spoke one final time:
“The purpose of life is not to control everything.
The purpose is to experience life fully—with awareness, compassion, gratitude, and presence.
To love.
To learn.
To awaken.
And to leave this world a little kinder than you found it.”
Rani Savitri